St Ursula’s College

Kingsgrove

Ursuline Learning

Framework

Ignite the

Spirit !

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Introduction The Ursuline tradition, founded by St Angela Merici emphasises that the aim of an Ursuline education is to help each individual person to live life to the full. An Ursuline education invites students and teachers to challenge injustices and be instruments of God’s work, helping those in need. The heritage of St Angela and the core values of Ursuline education, articulated by Ursuline educators form the basis of Ursuline education. (Taken from: https://ursuline-education.com/about)

St Angela's heritage

Academic Excellence

Service

Spirituality

CommunitySocial Justice

Openess to change

Leadership

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“I have come that you may have life and have it to the full” John 10:10

“Act have faith, make efforts, have hope, speak to God with all your heart:

then you are sure to be amazed.” Angela Merici

“The world tells us to seek power, success and money; God tells us to seek

humility, service and love.”

Pope Francis

Our Ursuline Values The Ursuline Tradition, founded by St Angela, sets forth the Gospel in unique ways. Our motto - SERVIAM - “I will serve” is dedicated to St Angela’s heritage and that of the Ursuline charism and is expressed through our Ursuline values:

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Custodians of Angela’s Vision

(Taken from: St Ursula’s Staff Committee: What it means to be an Ursuline Teacher 2017)

Angela’s vision of the Gospel brought to life the values and truths of Jesus and His teachings. She challenged her company of women to act through words and deeds of service to all members of their community. As custodians of Angela’s vision, we give life to the values of the Ursulines.

We give life to the value of acceptance through... • Believing all people are made in the image and likeness of God. • Actively supporting the mission and privilege of educating young people in

a Catholic setting. • Recognising every person’s uniqueness and valuing their experiences and

contributions. • Accepting that all students can achieve differentiated high standards.

We give life to the value of respect through...

• Acknowledging the dignity of each person within our community. • Trusting and harnessing the inherent professionalism and wisdom of each

of our colleagues. • Engaging in respectful and life-giving professional relationships within our

community. We give life to the value of unity through...

• Uniting with the global Ursuline community to keep the story and enduring legacy of Angela and her company of women alive and relevant.

• Being fair and compassionate individuals who value each other and who work together to achieve common goals.

We give life to the value of action through…

• Actively supporting the outreach initiatives of the College and seeing them as part of the larger global Ursuline imperative of service.

• Recognising that our Catholic faith and Ursuline values compel us to be agents of change.

• Striving to be the best we can be. We give life to the value of empowerment through...

• Creatively re-imagining Angela’s story in a contemporary global context. • Having the courage to take risks in our decision making. • Allowing others (and ourselves) to be their best selves.

We give life to the value of service through...

• Recognising Christ in the other. • Being Christ for the other. • Offering our work as a service to our students and their families and the

wider community.

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The Ursuline Learning Framework

(Adapted from “The Ursuline Learning Framework: A proposal for Teaching and Learning 2016)

The Ursuline Learning Framework (ULF) is a school wide, pedagogical approach to teaching and learning intended to ‘Ignite the Spirit’ in all members of our College community, inspiring them to develop a love of learning and enabling them to reach their full potential. The ULF provides students and teachers with opportunities that expand and encourage rich exploration and critical reflection. The ULF Pedagogical Principles help to underpin and build a professional learning community committed to student-centred and innovative learning.

Four ULF Learning Principles shape teaching and learning at the College: 1. Quality Relationships 2. Collaborative Partnerships 3. Flexibility & Responsiveness 4. Creativity & Imagination

The four ULF Learning Principles are made evident through the following:

1. QUALITY RELATIONSHIPS: Inclusive Learning Environments Quality Relationships create an inclusive learning environment where students are nurtured, connected and encouraged to take risks so that their individual and collective potential is realised. 2. COLLABORATIVE PARTNERSHIPS: Learning effectively with others Collaborative Partnerships require individuals to take responsibility for their own learning in order to work effectively with others in constructing meaningful ‘new’ knowledge. 3. FLEXIBILITY & RESPONSIVENESS: Recognising diverse student needs Flexibility and responsiveness recognises and addresses the individual and diverse needs of students, providing for all to experience success. 4. CREATIVITY & IMAGINATION: Developing critical, reflective learners Creativity and imagination are inspired by innovative approaches to problem solving, enabling students to actively develop critical, reflective and lateral thinking skills.

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The 4Cs:

Fundamental to the Principles of the ULF are the Learning Skills of:

● Communication ● Collaboration ● Creativity ● Critical Reflection

Learning Dispositions: Working in partnership with the learning skills are the Learning Dispositions of:

• Persistence • Agility and Flexibility • Motivation and drive to learn • Metacognition • Problem solving and questioning

(Taken from NSW Dept of Education: https://education.nsw.gov.au/teaching-and-learning/curriculum/learning-for-the-future/future-focused-learning-and-teaching/learning-dispositions)

Persistence Agility and Flexibility

Motivation and drive to

learnMetacognition

Problem solving and questioning

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The Ursuline Values, together with the ULF Principles, form the ‘warp and weft’ that underpins the overarching pedagogical and pastoral approach at St Ursula’s College.

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Learning at St Ursula’s

Learning at St Ursula’s is based on the four learning principles of the Ursuline Learning Framework (ULF). These principles have particular characteristics and are the basis of what learning ‘looks’ like at the College. These characteristics include, but are not limited to, the following:

1. QUALITY RELATIONSHIPS: An Inclusive Learning Environment contributes to Quality Relationships for all through: ● Modelling ● Team teaching ● Group work/peer instruction ● Communicative learning strategies ● Peer marking and evaluation ● Opportunities for self-reflection and evaluation ● Learning that has real world relevance ● Class discussions/activities that develop student interpersonal and intrapersonal relationships 2. COLLABORATIVE PARTNERSHIPS: Learning effectively with others in a spirit of collaboration and community which features: ● Student group work ● The use of ICT for communication and collaborative purposes ● Virtual learning experiences ● Use of collaborative learning strategies ● Project Based Learning approaches based on common learning goals ● Peer collaboration and teamwork ● Peer mentoring and learning ● Student centred learning approaches

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3. FLEXIBILITY & RESPONSIVENESS: Recognising diverse student needs allows responsiveness and flexibility to respond to student needs through: ● Pre-testing ● Differentiated learning strategies and tasks ● Appropriate compacting of the curriculum ● Student choice and negotiated tasks ● Project Based Learning approaches ● Student feedback and reflection ● Use of multi-modal teaching and learning strategies ● Use of flexible learning environments 4. CREATIVITY & IMAGINATION: Developing critical, reflective learners through creative and imaginative approaches to teaching and learning through: ● The use of inquiry e.g. paradoxical questions, essential questions, provocative questions, use of analogy, discussion, debate etc. ● The use of new and innovative technologies ● Problem based learning approaches ● Tasks that encourage synthesis, evaluation or the creation of original products ● Opportunities for self-directed learning based on area of interest, e.g. Passion projects ● Open-ended tasks

ACT

ACCEPT

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Empower

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Teaching at St Ursula’s The ULF Principles underpin and help to build a professional learning community committed to student-centred and innovative instruction. The four principles along with the Ursuline Charism underpin an overarching pedagogical practice. 1. QUALITY RELATIONSHIPS: build a professional learning community through:

• Middle Leaders as coaches and mentors

• Challenging and supporting students to become resilient

and independent learners

• Building teacher capacity

• Reflective practices

• Peer Feedback

2. COLLABORATIVE PARTNERSHIPS: build a professional learning community through:

• The use of classroom observations, walkthroughs and instructional

rounds

• Cross KLA teaching, learning and assessment

• Team and co-teaching

• A Professional Learning Community (PLC)

• Feedback and KLA Reflection

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3. FLEXIBILITY & RESPONSIVENESS: build a professional learning community through:

• Evidence-based instructional strategies

• A whole-school approach to differentiation

• A whole-school approach to Literacy and Numeracy

• Teacher analysis of data to inform practice

• Flexible grouping based on readiness in the classroom and

pacing/compacting/acceleration of the curriculum

4.CREATIVITY & IMAGINATION: build a professional learning community through:

• Innovative student-centred instruction

• Project-based learning approaches

• The use and integration of technology in the classroom

• Problem/Project based learning principles

Quality RelaTionships CollaborativePartnerships

Flexibility and Responsiveness

Creativity and Imagination

The Teacher at St Ursula's

ACCEPT

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ACT

Empower

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The Parent at St Ursula’s

Parents are partners in the learning and faith journey at St Ursula’s College. The ULF Principles and Ursuline values underpin and help to build an inclusive and vibrant school community which is based on Gospel values which sit at the heart of every Catholic school.

1. QUALITY RELATIONSHIPS: help build an inclusive school community by nurturing partnerships between parents and the College where all relationships are based on mutual respect and trust. 2. COLLABORATIVE PARTNERSHIPS: help build an inclusive school community by nurturing a spirit of collaboration in accordance with the ethos and values of the Catholic Church for the wellbeing of all the community. 3. FLEXIBILITY & RESPONSIVENESS: helps build an inclusive school community by recognising parents for the primary role they play in their child’s faith formation, learning and wellbeing, and that teachers and staff are respected for their

professional skills, competence and fulfillment of educating students in the context of Gospel teachings 4. CREATIVITY & IMAGINATION: help build a professional learning community when parents, schools and parishes work together in innovative partnerships to achieve the best possible outcomes for each student.

(Taken from: The Parent Charter for Sydney Catholic Schools)

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“Act, move, believe, strive, hope, Cry out to Him with all your heart,

For without doubt you will see marvellous things, if you direct everything to the praise and glory of His Majesty and the

good of souls.”

St Angela Merici

ACCEPT

Respect

Un

ite

ACT Empower

Ser

ve

Quality Relationships Collaborative Partnerships

Flexibility and Responsiveness

Creativity and Imagination

The Parent at St Ursula's